FOUR BITS: Bell, Spikes, Tebow / D1, Ross

Posted by Adam Silverstein | Posted in Football | January 6, 2012
Comments » 12

1 » OGGOA learned Thursday from a source close to the head coach that the Jacksonville Dolphins’ Kerwin Bell has not received any offer from the Florida Gators to either be the team’s quarterbacks coach or offensive coordinator, despite reports to the contrary. Bell, who has maintained privately that he would not leave his post at Jacksonville solely for a position coach job, has however been contacted by at least one other institution on a preliminary basis. A former Florida quarterback, Bell has made quite the impression in the coaching profession after building the Trinity Catholic High School football program from the ground up and winning two Pioneer Football League titles in five years with the Dolphins. The Florida Times-Union reported Thursday evening, citing “multiple sources familiar with Florida’s interest” in Bell, that he is “no longer under consideration” for a job with the Gators.

2 » Out for seven games (and eight weeks) with a sprained MCL, New England Patriots linebacker Brandon Spikes (notoriously media shy) met with reporters Thursday and spoke about how he is playing since returning to the field. “I never really got hurt like that [before], so it was kind of a burden,” he said. “But with my teammates pushing me every day, I just had to come out and do what I do and when my number’s called, I just want to come out and perform.”

3 » Having trained at D1 Sports Training prior to participating in his NFL workouts and being selected in the 2010 NFL Draft, Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow is set to invest in the organization’s first location inside the state of Florida. According to the Tampa Bay Times, talks between D1 and Tebow are ongoing and things “are nearly wrapped up to sign him at or near the end of the Broncos’ season.” Tebow, who purchased a stake in a D1 location in Savannah, GA last year, will be joined by Chipper Jones, Chris Jericho and Derrick Brooks in this new venture, the Times reports. The Florida location of D1 will be in Citrus Park in what was once a Circuit City; the company has spent approximately $1.7 million renovating the facility with membership costing $150-250 per month.

4 » Former Florida women’s basketball coach Carol Ross has been selected as the next head coach of the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks. Ross, who led the Gators from 1990-2002, will be reunited with former Florida great and 14-year veteran forward DeLisha Milton-Jones, who will play her 11th season with the Sparks divided over two stints with the team. Ross was an assistant with the Atlanta Dream for the last three seasons and helped the team reach consecutive WNBA Finals (2010-11). “Carol is a proven winner with an incredible track record at both the collegiate and pro levels. She has groomed many women for great WNBA careers,” Los Angeles general manager Penny Toler said in the press release announcing the hire. “We’re confident Carol is the ideal coach to lead the Sparks to our next championship.”

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FOUR BITS: Bell, tennis, Tebow, The Swamp

Posted by Adam Silverstein | Posted in Football, Other | January 5, 2012
Comments » 4

1 » With Jacksonville Dolphins head coach Kerwin Bell a hot name amongst fans to fill the offensive coordinator role with the Florida Gators, The Florida Times-Union reports that he is mulling an offer from the team but not to serve in that capacity. According to the paper, “multiple sources familiar with Florida’s interest” in Bell says the former Gators quarterback is being offered the quarterback coach role with the team. OGGOA was told weeks ago by a person close to Bell that he would only leave Jacksonville if Florida offered a role more substantial than position coach (such as passing game coordinator or co-offensive coordinator at a minimum) because the move would otherwise come with a great reduction in responsibilities and no increase in pay. If he was hired for one of the other positions, Bell would still have fewer responsibilities but could offset that with a return to Gainesville, FL and a higher salary.

2 » The ITA on Tuesday released its preseason national rankings and the defending national champion Gators can be found all over the organization’s lists. Florida as a team comes in at No. 1 to start the season while Stanford, the squad UF defeated for the title, will begin 2012 in the No. 2 spot. The Gators also have five singles competitors in the top 41 nationally: junior Allie Will (No. 3), senior Joanna Mather (No. 4), junior Lauren Embree (No. 25), sophomore Sofie OyenAlex Cercone (No. 41). Stanford’s Mallory Burdette, who Embree defeated in the final match of the national title event, is listed as the preseason No. 1 player in the country. Burdette, along with Nicole Gibbs, also holds recognition as the No. 1 doubles team. Two Florida pairings, however, are ranked in the top 15: Oyen/Will (No. 10) and Embree/Mather (No. 15). The men’s team is ranked No. 8 preseason with three singles competitors and three doubles pairs also listed.

3 » The Beaver County Times recently spoke with Pittsburgh Steelers offensive linemen Maurkice Pouncey and Marcus Gilbert, asking each about their time with Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow while in Gainesville. Both said plenty of kind things about Tebow, though Pouncey took a bit of an issue to only being asked about him and not the other Florida players he faces throughout the year. “How come nobody asked me about Brandon Spikes when we played the [New England] Patriots?” he quipped. “I’m tired of answering all these questions about Tim Tebow.” Fair enough. Pouncey and Gilbert both agreed that Tebow was a great teammate and somebody they liked on a personal level as well. They each also said he was a crazy competitor in the weight room. “They actually had to calm him down at times,” Pouncey told the paper. “He was trying to do things quarterbacks shouldn’t do. He’d go in there and try to bench press all this weight and do stuff quarterbacks shouldn’t’ do, and he’s the guy who was to throw the ball on Saturdays.” “Yeah, he’s an animal in the weight room,” Gilbert added. “He was a big guy with a lot of energy in all aspects of football, whether it was in the weight room, in the meeting room or on the football field. He was so passionate about the game. That’s what you want from your leader. He was the kind of guy you want on your team. Just being around him drove me to become a better player.” Pittsburgh and Denver go head-to-head in the first round of the NFL playoffs on Sunday.

4 » The University of Florida announced Thursday that demolition and renovations to the West Concourse portion of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium began one month ago on Dec. 5, 2011. According to UF, the renovations will provide new features “including enhanced restroom facilities, better overall lighting, improved crowd circulation, and winder concessions with more points of sale, including new food items not previously offered in the stadium.” There will also be “flat screen televisions, new graphics and new way finding signage, redesigned ceilings, and the use of high-end finishes along with brighter colors.” Florida expects the work to be completed before the 2012 season begins, and you can find out more about the project by clicking here.

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FOUR BITS: Bell, Sturgis, Harvin, Fedora

Posted by Adam Silverstein | Posted in Football | December 9, 2011
Comments » 1

1 » Minutes after the Kansas Jayhawks announced that they had hired Florida Gators offensive coordinator Charlie Weis as their next head coach, fans and media members began pointing to Jacksonville Dolphins head coach Kerwin Bell as a frontrunner to replace Weis at Florida. Bell spoke with The Gainesville Sun Thursday evening about the possibility. “Naturally, the University of Florida is my alma mater,” he told the paper. “It’s something I’ve always said I’d like to do. I love being a head coach. It would have to be the right place [for me to leave Jacksonville], and Florida is the right place. Will Muschamp has a personality that seems like a guy who would be great to work with. I definitely would be interested in listening. It would be great to come back.”

2 » Gators redshirt junior kicker Caleb Sturgis was a finalist but did not win the Lou Groza Award on Thursday. However, he was named a 2011 Walter Camp All-American and was placed on the second team, following in the footsteps of former Florida punter Chas Henry who was selected for the first team one year ago.

3 » Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Percy Harvin had one of the best games of his NFL career last Sunday, posting a career-high 156 yards with two touchdowns against the Denver Broncos. Harvin almost didn’t play in the game, according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press, after suffering “migraine-like symptoms” just one day earlier. “The symptoms were similar to Harvin’s past struggles with migraines, according to the unnamed person, including bloodshot eyes and vomiting,” the paper reported. Harvin had been without migraines all year after believing doctors found a way of preventing them in the offseason. If he did indeed suffer a migraine, Harvin may go through even more tests this offseason to try and find another solution.

4 » Former Florida offensive coordinator Larry Fedora (2002-04) was introduced as the new head football coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels on Friday. After leaving the Gators alongside then-head coach Ron Zook, Fedora worked as offensive coordinator at Oklahoma State from 2005-07 before taking the top job at Southern Mississippi in 2008. During his introductory press conference with UNC, Fedora singled out Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley and thanked him for all of his help getting to this point in his career. Foley told UF senior writer Scott Carter shortly after how much he appreciated Fedora’s ability and work ethic. “I’ve always felt very highly about Larry Fedora and have followed his career closely. He did an outstanding job for us as an assistant at Florida and has had success at every stop since,” Foley said. “He is a good football coach, but even a better person and family man and I fully expect his success to continue.”

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Replacing Charlie Weis as offensive coordinator

Posted by Adam Silverstein | Posted in Football | December 9, 2011
Comments » 27

With the surprise resignation of Florida Gators offensive coordinator Charlie Weis, who decided to take the head coaching job with the Kansas Jayhawks on Thursday, still the big news of the day, one of the major questions arising is a simple one: Who will replace him? OGGOA has complied a list of candidates who could replace Weis:

Kerwin Bell
Head Coach – Jacksonville Dolphins

Hire him: Bell is almost everything Florida is looking for in an offensive coordinator. He’s talented, runs a pro-style offense at Jacksonville, has professional experience as a player (four years in the NFL, four in the CFL) and coach (two years as offensive coordinator of the Toronto Argonauts) and is a Florida alumnus who was a quarterback on the Gators football team from 1983-87. His JU team features a strong down-field passing game but is also balanced with a solid running attack. Bell told The Gainesville Sun directly that he would be interested in returning to Florida, and a source close to him told OGGOA Thursday evening that he would listen to any offer head coach Will Muschamp might have for him. With orange and blue coursing through his veins, Bell would be loyal to the program and would have no designs on leaving anytime soon.

Hold up: Despite his success both with Toronto (2000-01) and Jacksonville (2007-present), Bell is relatively inexperienced as a college football coach. He spent six years as the top man at Trinity Catholic High School between the two jobs and is currently a coach in the FCS, which is a far cry from the SEC. Weis had total control over Florida’s offense, and it remains to be seen if Muschamp (inexperienced in his own right as a head coach) would be comfortable giving Bell that same power.

Brian White
Running Backs Coach – Florida Gators

Hire him: One of the most experienced coaches currently on staff, White has been an offensive coordinator before during his time at Wisconsin and has been a part of two national championship teams. He is one of the Gators’ best recruiters and is multiple on offense, already proving his ability to coach up running backs and tight ends at Florida. (He also coached quarterbacks and wide receivers at UNLV.) White is well-known and trusted by the players considering he is one of two holdovers remaining from Urban Meyer’s regime and has been with the team since 2009. He could be the safest move in terms of continuity, especially in recruiting where he has excelled during his time at UF.

Hold up: Though he has served previously as both an offensive coordinator and passing game coordinator, White has not called plays since 2007. He will have what may be considered a tryout at the 2012 Gator Bowl, where he will temporarily take over for Weis as Muschamp looks to make a permanent decision on a future offensive coordinator. White is also not the “sexiest” candidate – he has absolutely no NFL coaching experience, something that Muschamp appeared to lean on with his first staff.

Bell and White individually may each be capable of running the Gators’ offense, but hiring co-offensive coordinators is not out of the realm of possibility for Muschamp. Bell (quarterbacks) and White (running backs) each specialize in a different area of the offense and could serve as passing game coordinator and running game coordinator, respectively. Florida had co-defensive coordinators under Meyer with Greg Mattison and Charlie Strong, and the defense was the backbone of the team while both were on staff. Expect Muschamp to give this idea serious consideration as Bell would love to return to the Gators but would likely want more than a “quarterbacks coach” title and White will feel he is deserving of additional responsibilities (and money) considering his work ethic and experience.

Al Borges
Offensive Coordinator – Michigan Wolverines

Hire him: Currently helping turn around Michigan, Borges has served as a college offensive coordinator for 25 years, getting his start back in 1986. He spent four years with Auburn (2004-07), crossing paths with Muschamp during his final two years with the team. When you talk about experience – Borges has it – and his pro-style offense has proven that it can be tailored to utilize speed and quickness.

Hold up: Another candidate without professional experience, Borges’s resume should be enough to overcome that. However, he just took the Wolverines job this year and – considering that offense is on the upswing – probably won’t be too inclined to change jobs after one year. Although he has been an offensive coordinator for a quarter century, he has done it at nine different stops and spent two years or less at five of them, only staying at Portland State, UCLA and Auburn long-term.

Stan Hixon
Wide Receivers Coach – Buffalo Bills

Hire him: He has never served as an offensive coordinator, but it might be time for the 54-year-old to take a step up to the next level. With coaching experience on both levels (14 years in college, 13 in the NFL), Hixon moves on at will and picks his poison. He worked at LSU for four years (three alongside Muschamp) and has plenty of experience both coaching in the SEC and recruiting top-tier players. He left that job to take one with the Washington Redskins, where he stuck for seven years, and has spent the last two coaching pass catchers with the Buffalo Bills (under head coach Chain Gailey – former UF player and GA). Hixon was born in Lakeland, FL and could see Florida as a great opportunity. He is well-known for getting the most out of unknown players and helping them reach their full potential.

Hold up: Hixon has never been an offensive coordinator. He hasn’t called plays for any extensive period of time and has not coached in college in nearly a decade. Some position coaches remain such for a reason, and Hixon may have turned down offensive coordinator opportunities in the past in order to concentrate on the job he does best.

Bobby Williams
Tight Ends/Special Teams Coach – Alabama Crimson Tide

Hire him: Another coach with a history alongside Muschamp (at LSU and the Miami Dolphins), Williams has served under Nick Saban for seven years coaching wide receivers, running backs and tight ends. He was a head coach for three years at Michigan State (beat Florida 37-34 in the 2000 Citrus Bowl) and has extensive SEC recruiting experience. Williams’s versatility is a major plus.

Hold up: Like Hixon, Williams has never been an offensive coordinator and play caller, but his time as a head coach adds another level of experience. His loyalty to Saban is obvious and many believe the chances of him leaving his side are not good.

Paul Chryst
Offensive Coordinator – Wisconsin Badgers

Hire him: Considered one of the best offensive coordinators in the game right now, Chryst would be a huge hire for Muschamp and the Gators. He’s had immense success with Wisconsin and would do great as the “head coach of the offense” with total control over the unit.

Hold up: Chryst has been a candidate for head coaching jobs and may be unlikely to move from Wisconsin unless it is to run his own program. Florida is undoubtedly a step up but probably not enough of a difference for him to move across the country. A year or two of immense success with the Gators could springboard him to a top job, but he is doing fine up north and may be able to pick his spot sooner than later staying put.

Scott Linehan, Brian Schottenheimer, Mike Mularkey
Offensive Coordinators – NFL

Breakdown: Linehan, Scottenheimer and Mularkey all have connections to the program but each has his own reason for not giving much thought to the Florida job. Linehan, who was offensive coordinator under Saban with the Dolphins while Muschamp was there, is leading a burgeoning unit with the Detroit Lions and is unlikely to leave a secure job and take a cut in pay unless he really wants to get back into the college game. Mularkey, a former Gators tight end, has never coached at the college level and is closer to a NFL head coaching job as current offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons than he is to leaving the team and going to Florida. Schottenheimer, currently the New York Jets’ offensive coordinator, was a backup quarterback under Steve Spurrier at UF but also has no college coaching or recruiting experience. He would be the most likely out of the three to have any interest in the job considering he is heavily criticized as Jets’ offensive coordinator and could be on the outs up in New York.

Steve Spurrier, Jr.
Wide Receivers Coach – South Carolina Gamecocks

Hire him: Spurrier, Jr. has been a WR coach at Oklahoma and Arizona and spent time working under his father at Florida, with the Redskins and now at South Carolina. He played college football at Duke and got his master’s degree at UF. He may feel it is finally time to step out of his father’s shadow and up into an offensive coordinator job, and returning home could be especially sweet for him.

Hold up: According to a number of people – including his father – Spurrier Jr. is not ready to be an offensive coordinator. He’s had opportunities to call plays and lead the offense at USC only to have his father demote him back to WR coach and call the plays himself. He probably won’t be a legitimate candidate, but you never know.

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11/25: Florida vs. Jacksonville post-game notes

Posted by Adam Silverstein | Posted in Basketball | November 25, 2011
Comments » 0

The No. 9/10 Florida Gators defeated the Jacksonville Dolphins 107-62 Friday evening in Gainesville, FL, avenging an upset loss from one year ago. After the game, head coach Billy Donovan provided his thoughts on the contest his team just played.

BEST PERFORMANCE OF THE SEASON

Florida had already won two games by 30+ points this year but there is no doubt that their win over Jacksonville on Friday was the Gators’ most complete victory of the young season. In addition to UF outscoring their opponent by 45 points, Florida saw five players score in double digits, only committed seven turnovers and never relented after taking a big lead early in the game.

“This game was the best game we played in terms of how I envision our team playing offensively and defensively,” Donovan said. “There was added incentive. Our guys were probably disappointed about last year losing to Jacksonville on our home court. They were very focused and realized this was going to be a battle, that they were going to come in here very confident and had a lot of players from last year still on the roster. They beat us soundly in a lot of aspects, and I thought our guys came in really focused and wanting to play well.”

Senior point guard Erving Walker, junior guard Kenny Boynton and sophomore center Patric Young all agreed with Donovan’s assessment.

“No disrespect to Jacksonville, but on our home court we’re not supposed to lose to a team like that,” Walker said. “Today was our best game overall as a team from start to finish. I think we did a great job.”

Boynton and Young believed the Dolphins quit when the going got tough.

“We definitely feel like they gave up tonight,” Boynton said. “That’s how it goes. Once you feel like a team gives up, you want to keep pushing to try and kill them.”

Young added, “I really noticed it mentally with their team. They started arguing with each other a little bit and losing their team chemistry. After that they started turning the ball over. It affected them being a team. They couldn’t run their plays and were taking bad shots, and we took advantage of it.”

WELCOME BACK, ERVING

Walker himself admitted on Wednesday that he was trying to break himself of some bad habits. He played within himself Friday, finishing with six assists, just one turnover and 21 points on 6-of-9 shooting including going 2-for-4 from downtown and 7-for-8 from the charity stripe.

“Erving Walker did a great job recognizing that we were in the double bonus. He kept getting himself to the free throw line,” Donovan said. “He didn’t take a lot of shots tonight – and obviously he shot the ball better tonight than he had the previous four games – but he got himself to the free throw line. He had a level of recognition and was aware what was going on.”

If Walker can continue playing like he did on Friday, ensuring his teammates get open looks while hanging onto the ball and taking advantage of opportunities to get to the line, he could wind up having a very special season for Florida.

NOTES AND QUOTES

» Boynton on the team focusing on rebounding: “We know the offense is going to come, so basically the plan is to rebound. We knew that they were going to come in here and try to fight hard because they had a lot of confidence last year.”

» Young on his extra energy in the second half: “Coach was talking about in the halftime how we need to come out with a lot of energy. [...] It was a good opportunity for me to come out with a spark. I didn’t play too much in the first half, and I just felt like I could spark our team and give us what we needed.”

» Young said he will continue wearing the Oakley goggles for the short term because his eye is still bothering him a bit. However, it is not likely that he will have to wear them for the remainder of the season.

» Walker on Donovan being one game away from 400 wins: “I’m just a part of it. He’s been getting these wings for so long. I’ll be happy for him. He’s a great coach and hopefully we’ll get it for him.”

» Donovan of the fast tempo of the game: “We moved the ball, shared the ball, but we were really active in our press. We were able to cause a lot of havoc. Even though we didn’t turn them over a lot, it created a tempo and a pace where offensively we really were able to get out on the break.”

» Donovan on the play of sophomore G/F Casey Prather: “Casey coming off the bench – how he played in the game in the first half is exactly how he had been practicing all the way through. Getting him to transfer the practice to the game has been something we’ve been trying to help him with.”

» Donovan on nearing 400 wins: “I’ve had a lot of good players. It makes me feel very old, you know? Anytime you get to those milestones, they’re somewhat special, but more than anything else they reflect back on the guys that I’ve had a chance to coach. These guys are in their 30s now. I see Jason Williams here last week. The guy’s in his mid-30s and he’s retired. I just feel older now. It’s a different feeling. To be able to be here for so long and for that to happen, I’m just blessed to have a lot of really good players.”

» Donovan on freshman G Brad Beal spending some time at the four: “He’s just got an incredible mind in terms of picking things up. He just let the game come to him tonight. He had five turnovers; I thought a lot of his turnovers were off his defensive rebounds when he was trying to start the break. He gets 15 points and you don’t even know it. He grabs eight rebounds and you don’t even know it. I feel comfortable playing him anywhere.”

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No. 9/10 Gators cruise past Dolphins 107-62

Posted by Adam Silverstein | Posted in Basketball | November 25, 2011
Comments » 3

Revenge is a dish best served from downtown.

The No. 9/10 Florida Gators (4-1) utilized 11 clutch three-pointers to upend the visiting Jacksonville Dolphins (2-3) Friday evening, avenging an overtime upset one year ago with a blowout 107-62 victory at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.

Gators junior guard Kenny Boynton led the way for his squad with a game-high 22 points on 50 percent shooting (4-for-7 from downtown), and senior point guard Erving Walker chimed in with 21 points on 6-of-9 shooting while hitting 7-of-8 free throws and adding a game-high six assists.

Jacksonville opened up hot with a pair of threes to take an early 6-2 lead, but Florida quickly responded with an impressive 26-4 run spanning 6:21 to jump ahead 18 points with 10:25 left in the first half. Boynton made consecutive treys to end the run and also contributed a layup and two free throws during the stretch.

Undeterred by the Gators’ offensive breakout, the Dolphins countered with an 8-0 run to reduce their deficit to 10 points. However, UF kept the pressure on and used an 11-0 run including two baskets by sophomore center Patric Young to go up to go up 22 points.

Florida increased that advantage to 24 points but ended the first half with a 20-point lead after JU’s Russell Powell hit an off-balance three-pointer at the buzzer.

The teams traded deuces to open the second half, but the Gators scored 11-straight points and held a 31-point lead with 17 minutes to play. Young scored five-straight points during the run, which was capped off with a trey from sophomore PG Scottie Wilbekin.

Florida maintained its big lead for the remainder of the contest and wound up winning by 45 points, their largest margin of the evening.

All 10 Gators scored and five reached double figures. Joining Boynton and Walker were Young (14), freshman G Brad Beal (15) and redshirt junior G Mike Rosario (12).

Young, Beal and sophomore forward Will Yeguete each registered nine rebounds with Yeguete, who started in place of injured junior F Erik Murphy (right knee), also scored a career-high eight points.

Florida notched double-digit threes for the fifth straight game, and Boynton improved to 19-for-35 (54.2 percent) from downtown this season.

The Gators outrebounded the Dolphins 42-30, dished 11 more dimes (19-8) and hit 63 percent of their attempts from the charity stripe (22-for-35). UF held JU to 38 percent shooting and forced 16 turnovers on the evening.

Florida only committed seven turnovers Friday with Beal coughing it up five times. Young added three blocks on the evening and three Gators registered two steals.

UF will travel to Orlando, FL on Monday to take on Stetson in the second annual Florida Citrus Sports Shootout as head coach Billy Donovan goes for his 400th career victory. The game will tip at 7 p.m. and air live on Sun Sports.

Photo Credit: Phil Sandlin/Associated Press

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Florida not taking Jacksonville lightly this time

Posted by Adam Silverstein | Posted in Basketball | November 25, 2011
Comments » 0

It has been just over 11 months since the Jacksonville Dolphins upset Florida Gators basketball at home but no one wearing orange and blue has forgotten the overtime defeat that gave Florida its second loss to an unranked opponent in under three weeks.

Gators sophomore center Patric Young, who grew up in Jacksonville, FL, said Wednesday that he played basketball with some friends and Dolphins players that offseason and laughed at the possibility that Jacksonville could beat Florida on their own turf in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.

He wasn’t laughing after JU upended UF 71-68 in the House of Horrors.

“I played pickup with them in the summer, and they were talking all the noise before the game,” he reminisces. “They came in our own home court and beat us, embarrassed us in front of our fans.”

That is why Young’s phone blew up with missed calls and text messages after the game.

“I didn’t text any of the guys back. I’ll tell you that,” he said with a smile.

Young’s recollection of the game is quite vivid. He points out that while it was a back-and-forth contest with Jacksonville certainly playing quite well, miscues by Florida at the end of the second half cost the Gators the game.

It was tied at 58 with 2:55 remaining, but Florida had taken a two-point lead with 56 seconds left after Alex Tyus hit a free throw. Chandler Parsons turned the ball over with 24 seconds to play, Ayron Hardy threw down a dunk to tie the game and senior point guard Erving Walker missed a jumper with four seconds left to send it into overtime.

“The worst part was actually when the dude took the ball out of CP’s hands and just scored at the end of regulation. That was the worst part,” Young recalls. “Even though we were playing so poorly (UF shot 36 percent from the field, 21 percent from three), we still had the game in our hands and literally gave them the ball right there.”

JU outscored the Gators 10-7 in overtime to capture the victory. Walker – who missed the three at the end of regulation as well as two threes, a layup and two free throws in overtime – believes the loss wound up helping Florida last season.

“It was a huge wakeup call,” he said. “When we lost, coach said our backs were against the wall. We just beat Kansas State and we didn’t handle success well. We learned from that last year, and we’re not going to let that happen again.”

With so many players on that Dolphins squad returning for this year’s tilt, Gators head coach Billy Donovan has reminded his players not to take Jacksonville lightly. Florida has to treat them just like any other opponent and realize that one team can beat another on any given night.

“If there’s anything for the returning guys to understand and know from that game, it’s that there are a lot of players on Jacksonville who were on that team and a part of them coming in here and winning. Our guys have a respect level for their talent, for their team. This is a team that has our guys’ attention going into it,” Donovan said.

Young is certainly on high alert. He would prefer not to have anyone to answer to after Friday night’s game is in the books.

“We can’t take back the game from last year, but a lot of the guys have that game in mind from last year and want to win big,” he said.

“Just taking a win would be good enough in my book.”

HISTORY and STREAKS

» Florida is 28-5 all-time against Jacksonville and 9-1 under Donovan. JU defeated UF 71-68 in overtime in 2010.
» The Gators are on an eight-game home winning streak dating back to last season.
» Florida has outrebounded all four opponents this year and is averaging an +11.5 rebounding margin in each contest.
» The Gators are shooting 43.5 percent from downtown and have hit at least 10 threes in each game. Florida has made a trey in 655 consecutive games, a school record.
» Three Gators – Kenny Boynton, Mike Rosario and Erik Murphy – are shooting better than 50 percent from three (each has a minimum of 14 attempts).
» Florida is 17th nationally in scoring (85.5), 29th in rebounding (41.8) and 27th in assists (17.0) whereas Jacksonville does not rank better than 168th in any of the three categories. However, the Dolphins are shooting one-tenth of a percent better from the field than the Gators, hitting 47.9 percent of their shots on the season. JU ranks 66th nationally in field goal percentage, while UF ranks 67th (47.8 percent).
» The Gators are tied for 298th nationally in free throw shooting (60 percent).
» Florida is No. 6 nationally in points per possession (1.23).

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11/23: Donovan on Young’s eye, Meyer’s decision

Posted by Adam Silverstein | Posted in Basketball | November 23, 2011
Comments » 5

With No. 9/10 Florida Gators basketball set to take on the Jacksonville Dolphins Friday evening in Gainesville, FL, head coach Billy Donovan met with the media Wednesday to discuss what preparations have been made for his team’s next non-conference home game.

YOUNG’s EYE NOT A BIG DEAL

Despite sophomore center Patric Young sporting a bruised eye with plenty of swelling after being poked in it during Monday’s game, Donovan said that his big man is fine, practiced in full all week and will be good to go on Friday. Young has a small tear sclera (white part) of his eye and will wear goggles during the game to prevent irritation and potential further injury. He has not had any blurred vision and did not have anything happen to his pupil or retina.

“You don’t know how important your body parts are until you can’t use them, especially your vision,” Young said Wednesday.

UNDERSTANDING URBAN MEYER’s TOUGH SPOT

As a two-time national championship winning coach, Donovan empathized with the situation that former Gators head coach Urban Meyer finds himself in. Donovan commented at length about Meyer and his potential decision to return to coaching.

“He loves football. He’s really evaluating what he wants to do as a coach. Sometimes people look at things maybe a little bit differently than what reality is sometimes. The biggest thing for him right now, that he’s trying to get his arms around, is when you get a chance to win a couple national championships, every coach wants to experience that. There is a perception created that it brings a level of worth and value to your life, and it really doesn’t. [...]

“You got to really enjoy the process of dealing with these guys each and every day. Sometimes there’s victories that nobody sees that you got to really look at in terms of helping these guys get better. What happened for Urban – and it happened to me too – is you look at it’s happened twice so why am I coaching? What is my purpose for coaching besides just winning? I don’t think your drive or desire diminishes as far as wanting that to happen, but it doesn’t necessarily make your life complete when it does happen. There are so many coaches out there chasing that, thinking that something is going to change, and when they get it I’m not so sure it does.

“For Urban, it’s that balance now for him of chasing championships, his family, his health, those things. ‘Can I balance all that? Can I make it all work? Can I do it in a way that I can feel good about myself, feel good about my family, feel good about myself as a coach?’ I think he’s evaluating those kind of things and then he’s got to figure out how he can go about enjoying the process.

“My guess would be – and this is not about Ohio State. Do I think he’ll go back and coach? Yeah, I think he will, but I think for himself he’s got to get himself to a place where he feels good about the other aspects of his life that he was missing out on or wasn’t as attentive to as he wanted to be or felt comfortable with himself internally that he was handling the right way. That’s what I think it’s all about for him.”

NOTES AND QUOTES

» On the good and bad things coming out of the Wright State game: “The way we have shot the ball has been good. We’re taking a lot of threes and we’re having a little bit of presence at the basket. [...] Rebounding continues to get better. We’ve done a good job on the glass. We’ve got to become more consistent defensively, guarding actions, screens and those kinds of things. We’re not giving up a great percentage statistically, and we look pretty good defensively, but I’m looking at some of the shots that we’re giving up. As we play better and better teams, those are shots that are probably going to be made.”

» On being pleased that the guards are getting plenty of rebounds due to effort and recognition of the importance of giving the team chances to score: “We’ve certainly had a size advantage the last three games we’ve played, but our guards are trying to get in there. That’s something that we can embrace and have to understand. That’s a commitment and mindset each and every game we play. We’ve at least proven that with a good level of focus on that, we should be able to hold our own.”

» On playing redshirt freshman forward Cody Larson more: “The hardest thing for a guy coming off the bench is, ‘When am I going in?’ We’ve got a little bit of that with our bench right now. There’s not a flow of them knowing when they’re coming in. [...] We’ve got to get Cody in the rotation and get him in a position where he’s giving us some more depth across our frontline. I do trust him out there, but I just got to get him in a better rotation right now.”

» On how he statistically evaluates defense: “It’s pretty clear when [Mike] Rosario’s guarding a guy and a guy goes right by him. There is no chart for that.”

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